This invention is concerned with a process and related apparatus whereby aquatic propeller scars and blowouts may be repaired underwater for purposes of restoration. The restoration of all aspects of the environment has become extremely important in recent years. The three areas of restoration which are of primary import are reducing air pollution, restoring and cleaning up the land and cleaning up and restoring our waterways, the ocean and related estuaries. It is these related estuaries that are the primary thrust of the subject invention.
As a result of the decrease in water quality, millions of acres of aquatic plant life, which form an important part of the aquatic Eco system, have been destroyed. While the restoration of aquatic plant life is difficult, it is possible, for example see the process and apparatus of co pending application Ser. No. 09/104,681 filed Jun. 25, 1998 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,070,537 and application Ser. No. 09/573,724 filed May 18, 2000. While the process of this U.S. Pat. No. 6,070,537 is well suited to the planting of large underwater areas it is not particularly suited to the replanting of propeller scars or blowouts. Propeller scars are areas that have been striped of aquatic plant life, as a result of the propeller of the moving boat inadvertently being allowed to come into contact with the estuary bottom, thereby leaving a semicircular trench on the bottom of estuary. A blowout results when the hydraulic action of a propeller wash forms a hole in the estuary bottom.
Because aquatic plant life is an important part of the complex aquatic environment, the restoration of the total estuary bottom is important including propeller scars and blowouts.
The natural restoration of aquatic life, in propeller scars and blowouts is an extremely slow process. While it is possible to manually plant shoots of aquatic plants, in propeller scars this process is extremely slow and expensive. Due to the cost of labor, the manual planting of sea grass plants has at best been marginally successful. Further due to the peculiar nature of propeller scars manual planting is often unsuccessful. Also because propeller scars are widely dispersed the cost of manually planting just one propeller scar in an estuary can be prohibitive. Likewise manual planting in some instances is of questionable success as the person doing the planting, in walking over the bottom of an estuary, does further damage by crushing other plants which may be growing in the area. Blowouts present another problem in that they are usually so deep that sea grass can not recolonize the blowout.
This invention is concerned with a process and apparatus whereby sea grass can be restored and quickly planted in an economical fashion in a propeller scar or blowout or the propeller scar or blowout can be filled in such a manner that the re-colonization of sea grass is encouraged. Generally, it could be said that the process of this invention stabilizes the propeller scar or blowout such that plant growth is encouraged.
As used in connection with this invention, the term aquatic plant life and sea grass includes many species of plant life such as halodule wrightii (shoal grass), thalassia (turtle grass), etc. The process and apparatus of this invention is particularly suited to the planting of thalossia sea grass in propeller scars and blowouts for the re-colonization of sea grass in these propeller scars and blowouts.
Aquatic plant life as it exists in estuaries is important in preventing water pollution as this plant life acts as a filter for many pollutants and hence, this plant life helps to maintain water quality. Therefore it is important that the maximum area be covered with aquatic plants including those areas that have been denuded of plant life by the contact of a marine propeller with the estuary bottom or the hydraulic action of a marine propeller.
The restoration of aquatic life to the bottom of our estuaries is extremely important as this aquatic plant life plays a critical function in the total marine Eco system. A large number of important marine animals, both warm and cold blooded, rely totally or in part on aquatic plants as a breeding area, for cover, for food, etc. For example, the endangered manatee relies solely on sea grass as its food source and sea turtles rely on sea grass for part of their diet.
The primary object of this invention is a process whereby aquatic plant life may be planted or restored in propeller scars or blowouts which are located in the bottom of an estuary.
A further object of this invention is a process whereby a propeller scar or blowout can be filled in such a manner as to encourage the re-growth of sea grass.